Sometimes the most instructive business stories are those that unfold in reverse.American McGee retired from game development in 2023 after a pitch for a third Alice game was rejected by EA. Most observers marked it as final. Yetnearly three years since hanging up his keyboard forever, McGee has apparently changed his mind.
The question this poses is worth examining closely. What changed? The obvious answer is that his circumstances improved materially. But the deeper story reveals something more interesting about creative control, financial independence, and the sometimes perverse incentives of the modern entertainment industry.
McGee and his wife Yeni Zhang started Plushie Dreadfuls in 2015 while trying to support their pitch for that third Alice game (titled Alice: Asylum). What began as a funding mechanism became something far more substantial.The line proved immensely successful, to the point where McGee paid back an ancient loan to id Software cofounder John Carmack."It's like a rocket that took off without us knowing there was even a rocket," McGee told GamesRadar.
The irony deserves comment. McGee's attempt to bootstrap an Alice game through merchandise created a successful merchandise business that made the Alice game unnecessary for financial survival. In doing so, it returned to him something that institutional game publishers had taken: the right to his own creative ambitions.
McGee revealed that his return to game development was sparked by a confluence of inspiration. The practical catalyst was straightforward.Japanese fans who attended a Plushie Dreadfuls pop-up shop in Tokyo in December inspired him with handwritten notes about how much his Alice games meant to them.McGee says it was "really, really moving" and that he "literally cried on a couple of occasions."
Against this background, the new project makes sense.McGee's spiritual successor will follow the story of James, an orphan like Alice who gets taken under the dark wing of the Plushie Dreadfuls family.The game will be tied directly to Alice: Madness Returns, the second and, thus far, final entry in the series.McGee has made an explicit point to link the start of the Plushie Dreadfuls game with the end of Madness Returns. "In doing that, you [can] call that a spiritual sequel," he explained.
Legal clarity matters here.EA would neither greenlight a new game or consider selling the IP, deeming Alice "an important part of EA's overall game catalog." McGee's solution is to work within creative constraints rather than against them."There's a kind of obvious overlap, but not one that gets us in trouble with the lawyers," he notes dryly.
This is where reasonable people might see different lessons. Those sceptical of large publishers might view this as evidence that centralised corporate control stifles creativity; that McGee's flight to independent development proves the superiority of creative freedom. Those more institutional in outlook might argue that the story actually validates the existing system: EA maintained ownership of an important franchise asset, McGee found another outlet for his talents, and both parties benefited from clear contractual boundaries.
The pragmatic reality likely lies between. Large publishers like EA serve real functions: they fund risky projects, distribute finished games, and maintain long-term franchises. But they also impose restrictions that can frustrate creators. The emergence of independent funding models, from merchandise to crowdfunding to the accumulated wealth McGee has built, creates alternatives where none existed before. Neither system is optimal for everyone; the real progress lies in having both options available.
What matters now is execution.The game is still at a nascent stage according to a story outline posted to Instagram. McGee has spent decades perfecting his craft; the plushie business proved he understands markets. Whether he can translate that success into a game worthy of his ambitions remains genuinely uncertain. But he has something he did not have in 2023: freedom to try.